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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27626585">salt</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/entanglement/pseuds/entanglement'>entanglement</a>, <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/reserves/pseuds/reserves'>reserves</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>RedLetterMedia RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Crossover, Denial, M/M, Short One Shot</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 17:02:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,811</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27626585</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/entanglement/pseuds/entanglement, https://archiveofourown.org/users/reserves/pseuds/reserves</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>the construction of intricate rituals</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>syd/grigg</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>salt</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Grigg hates Earth.</p><p>More specifically, he hates trees, dogs, public transportation, young humans, old humans, strip malls, shopping malls, the sun and the disgusting excuse for food humans shove into their revolting mouths. The only positive thing that can be said about the place is that the beer is ok and there's Syd.</p><p>He's still coping with the fact that he's gonna have to permanently pretend to be a human when Syd moves into the apartment across the hall from his. He's another night person, so they often end up riding the elevator down at the beginning of the night and back up just before dawn in disinterested silence aside from a quiet, "hey," or a nod of recognition that the other exists in the world. Grigg gets a job bartending when his former surviving shipmates splinter out into their own separate lives to try to cope too and it's enough to keep his shitty apartment while he tries to figure out what the fuck he's supposed to do with the rest of his life. </p><p>Syd's the opposite. He's sure of himself to a fault. The first night Syd's band plays the bar where he works, they get booed offstage, but Syd is smiling and drunk once he boards the elevator for their early morning/late night ride back up to their floor. It's hard to tell whether the misplaced confidence is just a mainstay of Syd's personality or he's a fucking idiot, but it's kind of fascinating either way. </p><p>"Your show was... pretty good," Grigg offers.</p><p>"Yeah? Thanks, mate." Syd says, laughing as he switches his guitar case to his right hand and holds out his left to shake, "name's Syd, by the way."</p><p>"Grigg," he says, shaking Syd's hand.</p><p>"Greg?"</p><p>"Grigg."</p><p>"Nice to meet you, Greg."</p><p>Anger bubbles up into the back of his throat like acid reflux for just a moment before Syd bursts out in more laughter and reaches over and claps a hand across his back to his opposite shoulder.</p><p>"I'm just fuckin' with you, Grigg," he says.</p><p>Something snaps into place at that moment. He can't remember the last time he smiled or if he ever did, but he can't help but do it then. </p><p>It kind of snowballs from there. Somewhere in the span of a month or so, his insistence on keeping humans at arms length until he understands them completely starts to weaken and he gets closer with the bizarre human. Syd will show up to his place with a six pack, goofy wide smile and that awful accent and somehow charm himself inside to drink and laugh with Grigg for hours. He compartmentalizes the time with Syd as further study into human male behavior that will help him properly imitate it, but there aren't really any humans quite like Syd. Plus, the few times Syd does something for him, he says something like, "what are best mates for?" and smiles that wide, goofy smile. Humans can't be trusted and he really should be worried about one calling him their best friend, but it feels nice to not be alone. Maybe it's okay. </p><p>--</p><p>Grigg is spending more time with Syd than his girlfriend. He realizes this because she says precisely that in a text he opens one night as he and Syd are leaving a movie theater and he closes out the messaging app without replying when Syd starts to rant about the movie they just saw. </p><p>Initially, the girl was meant to be another layer to add to his cover and he could easily escape her and her daytime schedule, but his days off that were initially hers are soon stolen away by Syd. He can't say he's not thankful. The awkward fumbling around in his gross human body he has to do to attempt to reciprocate sexually is a chore and he'd much rather spend time hanging out with Syd or seeing Syd's band play before drunkenly stumbling back home together. Usually they end up at one of their places where they'll find some old reruns or paid programming to laugh at as they drink a few more beers. It's a routine he's actually comfortable with and takes his mind off having to be something he's not for a little while. It only becomes slightly less comfortable when he returns from the kitchen one night with their beers to see Syd found some softcore porn on one of the movie channels and he's got his hand down his jeans like there's no one else in the apartment. </p><p>He almost laughs, thinking this is some kind of joke, but that's when Syd glances over at him and pulls his half-hard cock out of his jeans. He feels frozen in place as he watches Syd stroke himself once, twice and then break their gaze to return his to the TV. It's only then that he can cross the room and sit beside Syd. That's how he ends up on the sofa, jerking off next to his best friend.</p><p>"Thought of this for awhile," Syd says. </p><p>It doesn't sound like a question, but Grigg says, "yeah."</p><p>He can feel that Syd's eyes aren't on the TV anymore because his face suddenly feels hot with a bright red blush that he knows Syd can see. He can't will himself to look anywhere but down at his lap, but Syd's big hand creeps into frame and takes over, slowly and fully stroking him from the base to the tip. It feels like he's new in this body again and this time it's not disgusting and he's not humiliated when he whines softly at a particularly good twist of Syd's wrist on an upstroke.</p><p>"Look at me," Syd says.</p><p>"Fuck, Syd."</p><p>His head lolls to the side to see Syd staring down at him with a look in his eyes that he's taking all of this in and committing it to memory possibly (hopefully) to repeat later. Maybe Syd will think of it while he's jerking off in his bed or in the shower and maybe he'll say Grigg's name when he comes. His mind floods with possibilities he hadn't ever thought of before now, but Syd is suddenly kissing him and the feel of Syd's lips and tongue override everything. He blindly reaches out to get a hand around Syd's thick cock and Syd groans so deeply into their kiss, he swears he can feel it echoing inside of his ribcage. He doesn't last much longer, but neither does Syd.</p><p>The gravity of this discovery regarding his sexuality isn't lost on him once they're panting against each other's lips with each other's come on their hands. It's kind of difficult to hide in plain view with anything different about him, but Syd kisses him again and one last burst of pleasure erupts inside of him as he kisses back. It should be okay to allow this to happen once. </p><p>--</p><p>Okay, so it happens more than once. That's fine, though, because rules are made:</p><p>1. No more kissing.<br/>
2. Grigg keeps his girlfriend and Syd keeps seeing whatever girl(s) he's seeing.<br/>
3. No mention of being gay.</p><p>Syd kind of pouts at the no kissing thing, but he doesn't complain once Grigg is on his knees, attempting to blow him the same night they agree to the rules. The way Syd reaches down to tangle his fingers in his hair while he watches with his mouth slightly open is fucking intoxicating and it makes him want to just let Syd mercilessly fuck his face. Syd seems to want to because his hips are shaking and his hand curls into a fist in his hair, but he stays still as Grigg continues to move around his cock. </p><p>"Wanna come on your face," Syd says.</p><p>He has to pull back and laugh before he says, "Fuck no."</p><p>"C'mon," Syd says, "you'll look so fucking good."</p><p>"I know.," he says. </p><p>He smirks before pressing a slow, wet kiss to the tip of Syd's cock that makes Syd's hips rock up just slightly. </p><p>--</p><p>The lube makes things considerably easier, obviously. Syd is able to get a few fingers inside of him, but it's still kind of an odd, intrusive feeling that makes him squirm to try to find the pleasure in it. </p><p>"Are you supposed to just dig around in there or is there a fucking point to- holy fuck," he gasps, interrupted by a sudden surge of pleasure shooting up his his spine. His head swims for a moment and he can feel a trickle of pre-come slip down the underside of his cock.</p><p>"Shit, what did I do?" Syd asks.</p><p>"I dunno. Something felt good." </p><p>"Can I do it again?"</p><p>"Yes? Please fucking do it again?" </p><p>It takes a moment for Syd to find the spot again, but he's reduced to a blushing, groaning mess in no time once it's located. Syd's fingers scissor open, but the stretch is nearly painless now in comparison to how fucking turned on he is and all he wants is Syd's cock instead of his fingers. He wants to hear and feel Syd in the same amount of pleasure and he wants his body to give Syd that pleasure; a strange mix of feelings he hadn't felt before now that are too complicated to really think too hard about. Instead, he shoves Syd back on the bed, climbs on top of him and slowly sinks down on his cock. Syd's head drops back on the pillow as he braces his hands on Syd's chest and starts to move. </p><p>"Holy shit," Syd rasps. “You could warn a guy.”</p><p>"Wanted you inside me," he says.</p><p>That shuts Syd up. Syd grasps his hips hard enough that there will probably be bruises there tomorrow, but he can't bring himself to care when Syd's hips rock up to match his rhythm. He'll probably have to look for the bruises tomorrow to remind himself that his best friend fucked him and it was better than any sex he'd ever had before then. He reaches back from Syd's chest to start stroking his own cock as he grinds back on Syd's.</p><p>"Fuck, you feel so fucking good, Grigg," Syd says.</p><p>"Yeah? How fucking good?" he asks.  </p><p>"So fucking tight. Better than fucking a girl."</p><p>The possibility that Syd might think of him instead next time he's with one of the stupid girls that hang all over him at his shows makes him feel so fucking powerful and somewhat possessive of Syd's body and Syd does nothing to dispel the thought when he pulls him down by the back of his neck into a deep, filthy kiss. He briefly remembers the rules before they're gone again, shoved to the back of his head to make it ok to sloppily kiss Syd before coming hard all over Syd's chest.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>this is kind of a summary of one very long au me an my friend sam wrote months ago.<br/>thanks for reading ! x</p></blockquote></div></div>
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